


Unexpected

by MetallicHeart



Category: Cuphead (Video Game)
Genre: Chips is a sad boi, Chips is gonna play a big part, Disappointment, Hatred, Hope, King Dice discovers something big, M/M, Secret Admirer
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-04-18
Updated: 2018-07-20
Packaged: 2019-04-24 15:30:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 4,087
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14358378
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MetallicHeart/pseuds/MetallicHeart
Summary: King Dice can't take the job anymore. He has to get away. Along the way he meets someone he hates beyond word, who, unbeknownst to him, wants to help him escape.And now, as if that wasn't stress enough, one of his faithful coworkers is going behind the Devil's back, trash-talking him in an attempt to get fired, but he has no idea what Devil will do once he finds who has been doing it. King Dice will stop at nothing to protect his worker, and to have both of them escape to the better life, anywhere outside of the dark cave of Inkwell Hell.





	1. Chapter 1

If you’re a rich dice man living in a castle and working in the most expensive casino in the land, it’s hard to imagine yourself in any lower condition. You get most anything you want, and you’re even the boss of a few casino workers, who all obey your every word or else. The only downside is, your boss in the Devil. But it’s not that bad once you’re used to it.

Then, it’s definitely hard to get used to. Quite literally, it’s hell.

FInally, the end of the workday came around. King Dice was exhausted beyond word, and he almost didn’t make it up the stairs. He stumbled and fell into a wall. He stumbled around his room, and finally hit his bed. He sunk into its cloud-like covers and groaned from comfort. FInally, he could sleep. And he would sleep deeply.

… And such is the way of the brain to keep one awake. It aggravated Dice, but he let himself think. Most nights, it was about something he had heard one of his employees say, or of how the Devil treated him. That last thought was what he was thinking of tonight. He didn’t get breaks so he had to sneak out. He never heard a praise from anyone on his hard work. And to top it off, almost everyone hated him.

Dice winced as those words entered his mind. ‘No one likes me.’ It’s a hard thing to accept, and only now did Dice realize that he had to accept it. Many casino patrons always, every day, shot him glares and dirty looks, even when he hadn’t sent someone away for cheating. His employees were loyal, but they always skidded away or avoided him at all costs. Then there’s the Devil, verbally abusing as he always was.

Dice rolled onto his side and tried to think of someone that liked him. There were many women he had passed flirtatious compliments to at the bar, to which they giggled and thanked him, but none of them ever came to the casino again.

Truly, no one liked him.

Dice let his mind aimlessly wander around depressing thoughts, until he suddenly thought of something that had never once crossed his mind:

He could escape. Sure, he had a soul-binding contract with the Devil, but maybe, just maybe, he could slip out and run for his life. Where he would go, he had no idea, but it would be better than suffering here under the likes of a sadistic ruler.

Dice began to imagine possibilities for plans. It had to be elaborate and Devil-proof, it had to be something the Devil couldn’t see past. Dice had to think, how would Devil notice?

The deep thinking lulled Dice to sleep, and the next morning, getting up with his alarm was a real challenge. But he did it.

All day his mind ran wild with how we would escape Inkwell Hell. It could be during the busiest hours- that would be the best time. No one would notice.

So all day, he waited, and waited, and waited. Being a Tuesday, it wasn’t busy at all, to Dice’s dismay. To keep his spirits, he kept softly telling himself, “The day will come… the day will come...”


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This story originally came from one of my journals, but I got lazy to transfer so I'm writing it different here ^^

The hoped for day came on Friday. The casino was so busy that you were always hip to hip with another stranger. The air was filled with the humidity from their breaths. Your ears would be filled with the calls and loud speaking and hearty laughs of patrons.

It was the perfect environment for an escape.

Dice looked to the door. He could go right now, right now, and no one would ever notice. The boss would eventually, but what would that matter? Being in possession of Dice’s soul contract didn’t mean Devil could pull up a map to track him down with.

He began to make his way, when he heard him. 

“DICE! To my office please!”

Dice groaned. He almost made it.

He slumped to Devils office and inside. “Yes sir…?”

Devil grinned his devilish grin and slid a slip of paper across his desk to him. “Take this to the town merchant. It’s an order on silverware, made with real silver of course, because I’m not cheap, you see.”

Devil chuckled low. Dice took the paper and put it in his chest pocket.

“Yes, sir. I’ll take it right away.” He turned to leave.

“And, Dice,” Devil added with a sly grin, “come right back.”

Dice winced. “Yes, sir...”

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
In town, the sun shone as it lounged in the sky with its few puffy white cloud friends, who were big and very soft-looking. The temperature was just perfect, and there was a soft, cool breeze greeting everyone’s face and blowing into alleyways, where it seemed to be colder.

What Dice would give to be here, rather than the hot, heavy humidity and smoke-filled Inkwell Hell.

He found the merchant’s cart. It was big for a merchant cart, and Dice couldn’t help but think about how cool it was to have a shop in a cart. Did the merchant live here? That would be interesting, too.

He stepped inside and the bell above the door rang. A huge pig stood behind the counter, looking down at what appeared to be a magazine. Dice looked around at the many shelves lined with trinkets and bottles, all with price tags of reasonable numbers. Behind the counter were racks of clothes and towels.

The pig looked up at him. “May I help you?”

Dice approached him and showed him the paper. “King Dice from the Devil’s Casino. He’s got an order for you.”

The pig stood up tall- he beat Dice easily by about half a foot- and took the paper, reading it closely. He looked at Dice and frowned a little.

“That job ya have workin’ fer the Devil is strenuous, ain’t it?”

“W-What?” Dice crossed his arms nervously. “What makes you say that?”

“I’ve never seen darker circles under eyes,” the pig looked down as he wrote something on a pad of paper. “It seems he works ya so hard ya don’t get much shut eye, do ya?”

Dice squinted. “Why would you assume that?”

“Because,” the pig stood again. “It’s the Devil. I’d expect him to give everyone a hard time.”

Dice glared. “Well excuse me, have you ever been right before him?”

The pig wrote something on a smaller pad of paper. “I ain’t. And it ain’t in my plans to.”

Dice scoffed. “Well it could always happen. Next thing you know he’s busting down your door for your soul.”

“I’ll be ready,” the pig responded, “I’ll be ready.”

Dice stared in shock. How was he not insulting this man? It only fuels the hatred.

The pig gave Dice a receipt. “I’ll have it in by Wednesday next week. You have a good day now.”

Dice squinted. “Maybe I will.” He turned to walk to the door, and just as he made it out, the pig called to him.

“Try to get some shut eye, won’t you?” he asked, “That job needs it more than anything.”

Dice winced. “... You don’t understand. You never would.”

He made it outside, and as he walked home, he read the receipt. Turns out the merchant’s name is Porkrind. Dice snickers.

“Hope he turns out like that one day,” Dice said to himself as he began his walk home. But as he walked home, his sadness grew and grew. He couldn’t get more sleep if he paid for it, and that poor merchant really would never understand even if it was explained to him.


	3. Chapter 3

Dice returned the receipt to Devil and escaped the smoky office as soon as he could. The smoke had ever bothered him until then. Everything hurt; his chest, his arms, his legs and feet. His eyes, even, with the smoke and oncoming tears, hurt bad. He rushed past the crowd of the casino and pushed past employees. Some called out to him, one, her knew, was chasing him, but he didn’t look back.

He had to get out.

Dice broke through the crowd and out the door. He was hit with the familiar, yet strong scent of Inkwell Hell cave’s thick smoke. It stung his lungs and eyes and tongue like it never had before, and he couldn’t see. He was blinded. He couldn’t breathe. His feet went weak and he stumbled. He could hear someone behind him, calling his name, but he couldn’t tell who over his coughing.

He lost his footing, and began to fall, but a pair of hands caught him under his arms and pulled him into their chest. They attempted to pull him up.

“C-Come on!” The voice exclaimed, “I’ll get you out of here!”

Unhesitantly following the voice’s orders, Dice tried to walk, stumbling a lot, and followed along to the best of his ability the movements of his unknown person. Dice wanted to take deep breaths to regain focus, but the air was only smoke from Hell. So he tried to tough it out.

In a few minutes, Dice suddenly felt a cold gust of fresh air against his face, which he breathed in greedily. FInally, his aching lungs relieved and he blinked tears from his eyes. The unknown person set him down carefully in the grass and up against when felt like the big thick trunk of a tree. Dice coughed a few times and rubbed his eyes, then, once he finally found focus, he looked up.

“Chips,” he said with surprise when he saw the chip-headed man before him, “what are you… why did you…?” 

Chips sat cross legged in front of him. “Because you’re my boss. Why else would I help you?”

Dice grimaced and tilted his head from confusion.

Chips was silent a moment before moving closer to Dice. “The smoke was bothering you… are you okay now?”

Dice coughed once more. He still couldn’t believe that the smoke had aggravated him so much. It never had before… why would it now?

“I think so...” Dice looked down at himself. “I don’t understand why it got to me as much as it did. It never has before...”

Chips frowned. “Well, you’re out now. Everyone needs fresh air every once in a while. Despite what, you know, Wheezy is.”

Chips laughed in an attempt to brighten his mood, but seeing how Dice wasn’t taking it, he cleared his throat and looked down.

“Sir…?”

“Call me Dice.”

Chips blinked from surprise. “O-Okay… Dice, um, can I tell you something?”

Dice nodded. “Go right ahead. I’ve gotta give you my ear now for what you did for me.”

Chips smiled a little. “Oh, don’t pay me back, I just have a big heart...” He looks down again, frowning. Clearly, his face was filled with worry. Something big was on his mind. 

Dice frowned. “What’s wrong, Chips?”

Chips was silent a moment before he began. “I heard about Mr. Devil looking for the worker that went around talking about him...” He winces. “It was me...”

Dice blinked. “What?”

Devil did go to Dice about some employee of his going around and bad mouthing him. This as a result caused less of a crowd in the casino, and it was losing popularity, one person at a time. He told Dice to go find whoever it was, and he would deal with them himself. Dice didn’t get serious with the searching, because he knew of the fate that would come of the poor, guilty employee. He didn’t want that happening. Now it could happen to Chips.

“It was me.”

“It couldn’t have been.”

“It was.”

“But you’re too nice to ever do such a thing!”

Suddenly, Chips begins to cry. “I’m trying to get fired...”

Dice was silent. He watched as Chips bowed his head. His shoulders jumped as he cried, and he covered his face with one hand. This lasted for about two minutes before Chips sniffed and rubbed his tears away with the back of his hand.

“It’s torture,” he whimpered, “I tried asking if I could quit, but he wouldn’t let me, so I’m trying desperate things to get out. I’m done, Mr. Dice, I’m done with it…! I can’t take it anymore! I want to go home!”

Out of uncontrollable instinct, Dice hugged Chips into him and rubbed his back. The poor kid… he was only ever happy and bright and positive. To think he could ever drop down to this state, was like the Devil could somehow be nice. 

But maybe Chips was always so bright because he was masking the pain with a more painful smile.

Dice sighed. “What if… what if I fired you?”

Chips looked up at him with big eyes. “R-Really? Would you?”

Dice nodded. “As long as that doesn’t hurt you more, I would do it to help you. I won’t turn ya into the Devil. You’re too kind and you’re desperate here. You don’t mean any real harm, do you?”

Chips sniffed, and then shook his head. “Never would I ever...”

“Alright,” Dice nodded, “then technically, you’re innocent, in my book. I’ll get you out of here.”

Chips’s big eyes filled with hope. “You will?”

“No matter what it takes.”

Chips began to smile. Tears streamed from his eyes and he hugged Dice. 

“Thank you… thank you!”

Dice returned the hug, rubbing his back. “Anytime...”


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's so hard for me to reclick with this story but I'm trying so hard ;_;

Thinking hard for an excuse and working together, Dice and Chips were able to fake the injury.

Chips had to work up the courage to make himself fall down the stairs, but just perfect enough as to not break anything. However, he had to make it look like he broke his leg, and being the most childlike employee in the Devil’s Casino, he was able to pull it off. The Devil believed it. It disgusted him, but he believed it, and he gave Chips time off to heal. Dice casted his right leg round his calf, and retrieved a pair of crutches for him. He faked a broken leg successfully.

So as to not raise suspicion, Dice waited a whole week, and then asked for time off. Again, the Devil was disgusted, but “since you’re so loyal all the time, I guess I can give ya three days, no more ‘n no less, alright?”

And so, Dice and Chips are sitting across from each other on a park bench under a tree. It was cool out, and a soft breeze ran through the air. The grass, as well, was cool and soft, enough so that Chips removed his fake cast and both of them removed their shoes and socks to feel the grass against their feet. This was much more preferable over Inkwell Hell, which had probably never heard of any sort of vegetation ever before. 

“So...” Chips tried to begin a conversation, as he and his boss had sat in silence for some time now, “it’s much nicer out here, isn’t it?”

Dice took a deep breath, filling his lungs generously with the cool, clean air. “It certainly is. What I’d give to just live out here...”

Chips nodded in agreement, and then looked around, at a loss again for a topic of conversation.

“Well…. Well shoot. Why do you want to escape?”

Dice looked down in thought. “Well… I don’t think I can take it anymore. The smoke and his rule. It’s just too much for me. I think… with how I reacted to the smoke a few days ago, it was like… like realization. That I shouldn’t be there.”

“None of us should be there,” Chips took a drink from his water bottle. “The rest lot of ‘em are brainwashed. Maybe if we brainwashed ‘em again, then we can get them to realize what they’re goin’ through and we can all attack the Devil from all sides! He couldn’t possibly be prepared for that could he?”

Dice shrugged. It was a good idea but it would take a lot of time. He has some real dedicated-to-the-Devil workers…

“Don’t forget how powerful the Devil is. He’ll be able to adjust in no time flat.”

Chips looked down at the table, at an ant crawling across it, and he frowned. “What about fakin’ deaths? Could we fake our deaths? Or can the Devil sniff that out too?”

“That’s an idea. We might just be able to pull that off. We just need to think of how.”

“Well...” Chips got to thinking, “What about that merchant Porkrind?”

Dice grimaced. “What about him?”

“He’s got lots of cool knick-knacks in his caravan. Maybe he’s got stuff that’d come useful to us with this possible mission of ours. It’s worth a shot!”

 

Dice slowly nodded. He didn’t want to interact with that merchant again but seeing Chips’s enthusiasm, he doesn’t really have a choice now. “It’s worth a shot...”

Listening from behind a tree, Porkrind took a deep breath, and began his walk back to his caravan to prepare for his visitors.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this took so long!! I needed inspiration... I got help from a friend!

Why Porkrind had decided to listen in on the conversation, he didn’t know. He had just happened to have left his caravan for a breath of fresh air, instead of breathing in dust from antiques or fumes from potions and power-ups all day.

Then in the process of getting away he saw two other gents also getting away, one of which was that King Dice from the casino who had visited just a while ago. Porkrind didn’t really know, but he saw something when he looked at Dice. He didn’t know what, he just saw… something. Whether it was good or bad, or on Dice or on him, or hate or some sort of love, Porkrind didn’t know. He just knew, he felt something.

And that weird feeling became worse when he entered his caravan.

“Gosh this darned place is a mess…!” He quietly cursed to himself as he picked up some fallen things and straightened out the rug. The condition of his caravan never bothered him… and it really turned his stomach to think about how it suddenly did. Maybe it’s because a “high-class” person is coming and he doesn’t want to disgust him?

But why does whether he disgusts him or not matter suddenly! He never really thought about how his caravan looked would affect others… but why now? Why now of all days! That shelf is too dusty and the rug is too wrinkled and bunched! Is that photo crooked? This bottle isn’t shining enough..! Why is nothing perfect!

After much adjusting to pretty much everything in the caravan Porkrind came to stand behind the counter. He straightened up and dabbed at the sweat on his forehead with an old rag. He was never so nervous for anything before… so this is definitely something weird. Whatever it is.

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Fake our deaths here we come!” Chips beams as he begins to approach the caravan. Dice sighs and slumps along. He was too tired to be out in the day despite the beautiful weather. All the stress, with some remaining, had drained, leaving him bereft of energy and the want to do anything. 

And upon entering the caravan Dice stumbled and fell into Chips, who in turn fell against the doorway.

“Oof! Mr. Dice!”

Dice stood to the best of his ability and rubbed his eyes. He sighed shakily. “Sorry… jus’ lost my footing...”

Porkrind winced, as he felt Dice had stumbled because of the flooring. But when Dice looked up, Porkrind noticed the dark bags under his eyes. Oh… he’s exhausted… I knew that casino job of his was a bad one!

And he wanted to help Dice feel better.

“Good afternoon...” Porkrind straightens up as the two come to the counter, but he can feel his heart nervously flutter as Dice gets closer. Again, something weird. What the heck is that…! His heart must be failing early. Or something weird like that. Maybe his weight is a problem…. “How may I help you two gentlemen?”

Porkrind’s heart broke a little when Dice looked up at him with the most exhausted and drained expression he had ever seen. The last time he saw a face like that was his sister’s after her wedding... Dice didn’t have any sort of fire or anger in his eyes like he normally did. Something is definitely wrong… maybe besides that job.

“Hello sir!” Chips smiles big. “I’m Chips Bettigan from the casino! And you know Mr. Dice. We’re here to ask a favor of you!”

Eager to take the possible opportunity to help Porkrind straightened up the most he could. “O-Of course, what might the favor be?”

Chips began to explain the whole evil Devil and Dice being pressured and he wanting to be free and such and such. He ended with how they couldn’t escape unless their contracts were destroyed, and how the contracts were so well protected that burning them wasn’t an option for their escape.

“And so!” Chips still smiles so big somehow. “We think the only way to get out is faking our deaths!”

Porkrind blinked a few times. Okay, if nothing else worked, then yes, faking a death is the best possible plan. Besides killing the Devil. But breaking the law would not be part of the plan, and so something more legal like faking a death, is the winner.

“Sure...” Porkrind nods once. “I’d be more than happy to help the two of you out.”

Chips claps. “Great..!”

Dice sighs with relief. He was so tired he was thinking this merchant could change everything for him. Maybe he can….

“There a certain way you wanna die...?” Porkrind chuckles at his question. That’s not something you ask anyone… besides an unlucky prisoner.

“In a fire!” Chips clasps his hands together. “Because kidnapping, Devil would just sniff out our tracks and find us. Murder, he’d figure it out too soon since he’s a smartie pants. And we can’t pull off strokes or heart attacks because we can only go so long without breathing. Hence! Dying in a fire… I think could slip right under his nose.”

Porkrind nods. “And any livin’ smell would be burned away. I could acquire some pretty real-feelin’ burnt carcasses you can use, and I can help with startin’ the fire too. Where do you want to do it?”

As Chips talked about how to set it up behind the casino, Dice just stared at Porkrind, either in awe or just because he was tired. But he felt… in this caravan, he felt like he could really relax… and nothing would bother him. The word sleep kept repeating itself in his head. He didn’t remember the last time he had any, let alone a minute of it. He didn’t see how he would make it back… but he had to. Or the Devil would be on him for answers for a prolonged absence.

Soon a plan was developed, with Porkrind writing everything down and even making little sketches. The ‘fire’ would be on Friday, during the midday hour. Whiskey normally goes out to burn the trash, and Chips, being Chips, can offer to help. Dice will be outside observing them to make sure they don’t try to run away from the premises. Whiskey will go inside, and Chips will run behind the fire. Dice will follow, and they’ll retrieve the carcasses from the specially-picked hiding place and place them accordingly in the small fire. Dice will add gasoline- carefully, so that they don’t actually get burned to death- and they’ll both scream as if they’re being burned alive, pleading for help. Hopefully someone will run outside and panic and try to put out the fire, only to find two charred bodies in the burnt trash. Dice also plans to leave the gasoline tank on its side so that it appears as if Whiskey placed it on uneven ground, causing it to fall over. Therefore Chips and Dice will not be suspicious.

The plan was perfect. And soon Chips starts on his way out, but Porkrind stops Dice.

“Hey… you’re not gettin’ any sleep, are ya?”

Dice is silent before he sighs. “No… I’m not.”

“Here,” Porkrind slides a box of good sleeping pills to him. “On the house, I hope everything gets better fer ya.”

Dice takes the box and finds himself smiling a little. “Thank you… I’ll remember this.” He then leaves, his heart throbbing because someone really cares about him. And Porkrind’s heart throbs also, because Dice accepted the help he ached to give.

**Author's Note:**

> Sorry for short chapter! ^^


End file.
